The stories explore such issues as the Holocaust and its long-term effects on subsequent generations, anti-Semitism in the mid- and late-20th-century United States, and the dark side of the Diaspora (e.g., the decline of revolutionary fervor, the passing of generations, the Golden Ghetto, etc.).

The stories in this collection include “Trajectories,” Marge Piercy’s story of the divergent paths taken by two young men from the slums of Cleveland and Detroit in a rapidly changing post–WW II society; “Some You Lose,” Nancy Richler’s empathetic exploration of the emotional and psychological challenges of trying to sum up a man’s life in a eulogy; and “Yahrzeit Candle,” Stephen Jay Schwartz’s take on the subtle horrors of the inevitable passing of time.

These works include many “teachable moments” about the history of prejudice, the contradictions of ethnic identity, and assimilation into American society and culture.

Other Stories include:

Bitter Herbs: “Devil for a Witch” by R.S. Brenner, “The Sacrifice of Isaac” by Steven Wishnia, “Loving Underwater by B.K. Stevens; and “Quack and Dwight” by Travis Richardson

The Golden Land: “A Simkhe (A Celebration)” by Yente Serdatsky, “Trajectories” by Marge Piercy, “Lost Pages from the Book of Judith” by Kenneth Wishnia, and “The Legacy” by Wendy Hornsby